Paperweight
by aurimaedre
Summary: A sort of sequel to In Which Eponine Teaches the Guys a Lesson. One-shot Eppieferre from the song Paperweight.


**This is somewhat of a sequel to In Which Eponine Teaches the Guys a Lesson and was written for Hihiyas. (It was also taken from two prompts- one was the song Paperweight and the other was them watching TV together and Eponine gets to emotionally invested in the show)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Les Mis**

"Alright, next question… what are the five axes to ascertain symptoms and overall functioning of an individual according to the DSM-IV TR?" Combeferre asked; exhaustion plain in his voice. He and Eponine were currently studying for their psychology final and it was turning into a late night study session at the insistence of Eponine. Even though the final wasn't for another two days Combeferre couldn't bring himself to say no to her.

A minute passed and there was still no answer to his question. He turned around and saw Eponine curled up in a blanket on the couch fast asleep. He sighed and sat back to drink in the sight. It was rare to see her so calm and he couldn't help the errant thought that went through his mind that made him wished he was able to be the one to relax her.

Though they were in the same program this was the first time he had ever been in a class with Eponine. Knowing a little bit of her past he had always known that she was intelligent, but even he was surprised at her level of intellect. This new information just added to the complexity of who Eponine was and he quickly fell under her spell. He had never felt this way about someone before and he has spent hours this past semester trying to analyze his feelings into coherency. He soon realized he couldn't and with every passing moment he spent with her his feelings grew until they felt like a paperweight on his heart. He knew that he would have to be careful around her so that she wouldn't pick up on his feelings since her ability to observe was practically as great as his. He also knew that he had to approach her carefully, find the right moment when her guard was down before declaring himself… and so far she had only let her guard down a couple of times around him. Granted, it was a couple of times more than any of their other friends.

Shaking his head clear he once again looked at Eponine. The couch was far from the most comfortable place to sleep and with a sigh he stood up and walked over to the couch. Sometime between when he first noticed her and now she had managed to kick off the blanket and had curled up even more to combat the chill in the apartment. With a sigh he gently placed his arms underneath her and lifted her into his arms. She reacted instantly to his warmth and turn to burrow into his chest making his pulse race. He stood there for a moment to commit the sight of her in his arms into his memory before gently walked that few steps it took to get to his bedroom and laid her down on his bed and covered her up. He knew that with her being the sole caretaker of her siblings it was rare for her to get a full night's sleep and didn't want to wake her.

He noticed that her hair created a curtain over her face and he couldn't resist pushing it over away and tucking it behind her ear. Her hair felt as soft as he imagined it would and when he looked upon her face he instantly regretted his actions. Her face was the epitome of serene, but that's not what was causing his current dilemma. His eyes had zeroed in on her lips. They were partially open, looking plump and inviting. The color of her lips were a pale pink; a color that practically begged him to bring some warmth and darken them to a more natural red. He was transfixed and every bit of longing he had felt of the course of the semester was washing over him in a flood, his mind yearning to have the taste of her on his lips. For once he couldn't keep ahold of them, the sight of her in his bed, her head resting on his pillow… it all proved to be too much for him. He lowered his head and gently brushed his lips against hers, applying as little pressure as he could to not wake her but it was still enough to get his blood pumping and body asking for more. He drew back and was internally fist pumped when Eponine gave a small, content sigh as if she felt his kiss.

He wanted to crawl into bed with her. He wanted to gather her up in his arms and hold her until the daylight came but he knew that now was not the time. He longed to wait her up and tell her how long he had been waiting for her, to tell her of his feelings for her and get this weight off his chest. But he knew he couldn't. He was a patient, logical man and even though his emotions were fighting him every step of the way he knew that if he waited just a little bit longer then maybe things could work out and the next time they were in his bed they could both mess up the covers.

Combeferre was roused from his nap on the couch by some very insistent knocking. He grumbled as he stood to go answer the door. He had just finished the last of his finals and all he wanted to do was sleep and he intended to tell whatever one of his friends were at the door, although he suspected it to be Grantaire.

"R do you have any idea how little sleep- Oh, hi Eponine." He finished sheepishly. "What are you doing here? I figured you would be sleeping, I mean, we only got about two hours last night."

"Oh, I can never sleep after I take a test. I usually just keep going until I eventually pass out somewhere." She said dismissively.

"That doesn't seem very healthy…"

"Yea, but what are you going to do. Anyways, I decided that it's time you watched season 2 with me and as a congratulations-you-survived-the-semester present to myself I picked it up on DVD."

Combeferre was confused, "Um… I don't know if this is the lack of sleep talking… but season 2 of what? Should I know what you are talking about?"

"Of Sherlock, duh." She pushed her way past him and into his apartment. "Alright, you go set up the DVD and I'll figure out some sort of snack arrangement from whatever you have in the kitchen. I also brought some drinks so that's taken care of."

She tossed him the DVD, which he barely caught and he noticed her for the first time since she showed up. She did, indeed, have drinks… two bottles of wine in fact. And that's when he noticed her outfit. She had obviously planned for a marathon and dressed in pajamas. He tried to avert his gaze but ended up covertly checking her out. She was wearing a tight pair of yoga pants and a lacy thin sleeved shirt and looked utterly beautiful. He almost passed out when she stood up on her toes to get something inside the pantry and the tiniest sliver of skin could be seen, giving him a view of her lower torso. He was so distracted by this that he missed Eponine covertly checking out his bare chest herself.

By the time Eponine finished in the kitchen Combeferre had managed to calm his thoughts and settled in for a long night of torment, especially when she sat right beside him and moved his arm so that it was around her.

After a few hours they were on the final episode and Combeferre was half intently watching the show while the other half was freaking out. Over the course of the evening Eponine had gotten more comfortable and decided that his chest made of the perfect pillow. He could smell the scent of passion fruit from her shampoo and feel the warmth of her body and it was proving to be highly distracting, but he was relishing it all the same. He had moved his arm down so that he was hugging her to his side and slouched his body so that his chin could rest on the top of her head. He was utterly content.

They were nearing the end of the episode when he felt her tears on his chest. He thought he was mistaken but when he stretched his head around he could see the tears slowly making their way down her face.

"Are you crying?" He asked, bewildered. He had never seen her cry before.

"Yes." She answered pitifully.

"WHY? It's just a tv show…"

"It's just so sad! I mean, he has to give up his life to save his friends and he turned to the pathologist and finally admitted that he cared for her! They are just perfect together and now it's not going to happen. It just isn't fair."

"Okay, I guess I can see that. I still don't really understand why it's cry worthy."

"It's because you're a guy and you wouldn't understand." She said cheekily.

Combeferre laughed, "I resent that a little bit."

They settled back in and before long the water works started back up again.

"Eponine, I'm starting to get a little concerned over your emotional attachment to these characters…"

"But…. He… he shot himself!" She cried.

Combeferre did a double take. "Wait… you upset about Moriarty shooting himself but not Sherlock jumping to his death?!"

"Well, I already know that Sherlock didn't actually die so while I am sad about it it's not the same! Moriarty was my favorite character and a good villain and now he is no more! It's sad." She said, trying to explain herself.

"This makes no sense. He is the bad guy, but that logic you should be glad."

"He's a favorite character. I am allowed to be sad that he died whether or not he's the bad guy." Eponine reasoned back.

"If you say so… I still think you are way too emotionally invested though."

Eponine sat up a little so that she could turn and glare at him. He wasn't focused on her glare however, but on the fact that she was now within inches of his face and still leaning on his chest. He heart picked up again as he focused in on her lips.

"I'm allowed to care about the characters you know. It just means that the writers are doing their job!" She said with a pout.

Combeferre chuckled as he brushed back some of her hair, "I never said that it was a bad thing, just that it's a fact. I think it's cute that you care so much."

He let his gaze drift from her perfect pout to her eyes and was instantly mesmerized. "In fact… I think… I think you're pretty perfect." He said softly.

Eponine gasped slightly and it made his desire to kiss her increase exponentially. The gasp had caused her lips to open just the perfect amount and he could feel himself leaning into her. He glanced up to make sure that it was okay and Eponine gave a small nod.

The kiss was indescribable. Full of passion and longing and Combeferre felt himself drowning in the taste of her mouth. He didn't want it to end and increased the pressure of the kiss and wrapped his arms around her, drawing her as close as he possibly could. She responded enthusiastically and slipped her tongue inside his mouth, causing him to unconsciously groan. They continued to make out until the DVD player turned off and the static of the TV brought them back to reality.

Combeferre reached for the remote to turn the TV off and leaned back on the couch to wrap her back in his arms. Panting slightly Eponine leaned forward to rest her head against his chest. "I have been waiting for half a semester for you to do that." Combeferre grinned and pulled her up flush with him again.

"I have been wanting to do that for half a semester…. It looks like we have some catching up to do then." He said as his mouth descended on her again.


End file.
